The Register is now accepting original artwork and writing for the spring issue!

Students in grades 7-12 are invited to send submissions to bls.register@gmail.com by April 2.

Please note The Register does not publish works by anonymous authors or artists. (MJ)

If you are in need of groceries, there is an opportunity for free grocery delivery from STEAM Ahead and the Boston Resiliency Fund. STEAM Ahead is hoping to partner with our school to provide free groceries for up to 50 families 2-3 times before the end of the school year. Check out the flyer attached for home delivery of essential items!

drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ROZNPk64PL6THswv-4x6861rV5O9Ly3f?usp=sharing

Calling all books! The time has come to hunt down and return ANY overdue Keefe library books. You can return Keefe Library books to ANY BPL branch library or (if you’re attending school as a hybrid student) by placing them in the book return OUTSIDE the ground floor library exit. If you’d like to BORROW books, please fill out the attached Google form. We can deliver the books to your homeroom, send them to your branch library, or leave them at the entry to BLS for you to pick up.

Need Community Service? Of course you do! Connect with 15+ service organizations and find great places to volunteer at the spring BLS Virtual Community Service Fair, Wednesday March 31 at 2:15. Complete this form to receive the Zoom link.

On Sat. 3/27 and Sun. 3/28, BLS students competed in the annual Harvard Certamen Tournament against competitors from around the country. The competition was stiff and we are incredibly proud of how well all our teams performed!

Novice Division: 14th place = Malvika Dias, Trevor Gracombe, Joseph Hemr, Maya Koreth, Mila Matteson 1st place = Andrew Lai, Cole McKittrick, Ailin Sha, Mark Snekvik (MVP), Hannah Stoll

Intermediate Division: 3rd place = Jenny Chen, Zachary Chen, Neil Jin, Estiven Lezama, Jiajia Zhang 1st place = Creighton Banitt (MVP), Biya Brook (MVP), Joanna Lin, Alex Xu

Advanced Division: 11th place = Sam Bogomolni, Louisa Hemr, Kyler Hoogendoorn-Ecker, Sanjana Singh 1st place = Luc Azar-Tanguay, Ethan Clark, Jinwoo Kim, Danny Nguyen

The fourth issue of Veracium, a newsletter published by BLS V.O.T.E, is up now! Veracium is currently published monthly on our website on Mondays and details some current events, be it local, national, or global. In this issue, we cover: Russia protests and election political party problems, Myanmar Civilian Leaders, Hate Crimes against AAPI, the Atlanta Shootings, the Sarah Everard Killing, the Dr. Seuss Controversy, the Stimulus Bill, Vaccine Distribution Inequality, and the Andrew Cuomo Controversy.

Read it here: (sites.google.com/bostonk12.org/blsvote/veracium/issues/3222021)!

Please note that in recognition of Passover, Monday, March 29 will be a “no test day” with no assessments administered. Considered one of the most sacred holidays in the Jewish religion, Passover is ultimately a celebration of freedom, commemorating the story of the Israelites’ departure from ancient Egypt. The festival begins with one or two nights of traditional meals or Seders, this year on the evenings of Saturday, March 27 and Sunday, March 28. We wish those in our community who observe the holiday a sweet and joyous Passover.

We have revised the schedule for the week of March 29 to accommodate the 4 day week due to no school on Good Friday, April 2.  Next week,  Wednesday’s anchor day will be dropped so that classes that traditionally meet on Thursday will be held on Wednesday, and Friday’s classes will be held on Thursday.  Accordingly, Friday’s Flex block will be on Thursday, April 1.  Please note that Wednesday will still remain remote for all students.  For those who would prefer a visual reminder, we include the Schedule for March 29-April 1 .

Are you interested in learning more about the environment and keeping our water clean? BLS Science Club is inviting everyone to come join us for our guest speaker, Adriana Cillo, from the Boston Water and Sewer Commission! Participants will receive community service hours for attending.

The event will be hosted on Tuesday, March 30th, at 2:00pm. If you are planning to attend please fill out the Google form below: forms.gle/whaDT7ASUVSeR3j19

Are you in the mood to make impulsive decisions? Do your friends call you “boring” or “too uptight” or “a sick, sick man Jim, I’m divorcing you!”? Well, you should come see “On a Whimprov,” a show full of impulsive choices! Unless you’re Jim, of course, he made one too many impulsive decisions. . . We can’t wait to have you! Shows are Friday, March 26 at 3:30pm and 7pm Tickets are pay what you can and available bostonlatin.ticketleap.com/whimprov Poster here imgur.com/a/YVC1jcd

LETS, Let’s Erase the Stigma, is hosting an event, Mental Health: Beyond the Classroom, on Friday, March 26th from 2:00-3:30 PM. Attending this event will earn students 3 hours of community service and will allow them to learn more information about mental health and why stigmatization has such harmful consequences.

Here is the sign-up link. The Zoom link will be sent to students via email on Friday morning.

Students in Classes I-IV are invited to participate in the JSA One Day debate and discussion this Sunday on Google Meet. Complete this form to receive more information and the link.

forms.gle/cCVAeDsY1boqP1jY6

Thank you to all of the attendees that came to the Friday Flex forum on anti-AAPI racism. We are extremely proud that our BLS community was able to come together to process recent events and exchange experiences on the matter.

Please check out this curated toolkit, which includes our presentation, at bit.ly/blsaapitoolkit. Please reach out to your guidance counselor or Ms. Murray (dmurray@bostonpublicschools.org) if you need some space to talk and/or reflect on your thoughts and feelings.

Chromebook Handouts are here again! We will be doing a Chromebook 2 distributions for our returning hybrid students this week. Chromebook distribution 1 will take place on Wednesday March 24th from 1pm – 5pm. Chromebook distribution 2 will take place on Friday March 26th from 2:30 – 5pm. Both distributions will take place at the front door of the school. Parents / guardians are also welcomed to pick up a Chromebook for their student, the student does not have to be resent. Please be prepared with student ID or ID number for pick up. See you soon!

This is a paid opportunity for Black and Latinx girls interested in STEM. Please see folder with more information.

Criteria:

Diverse female high school Juniors/Seniors, including those who are Black, Latinx, and women, with a passion for robotics and technology are encouraged to apply.

Must be enrolled in a Massachusetts high school during the 2020-2021 academic year. Must have a teacher recommendation.

Must be able to meet during the week of April 19 – 23 and Saturdays from May 1 to June 19 when the internship at companies begins Paid Internships June/July 2021-August 2021. Must be able to meet with their mentor for a minimum of one hour every two weeks as part of the mentorship program.

Please complete this application by March 26th, 2021 to be considered. Info Session: Thursday, March 25th.

The BLS Science Team C team (high school) came in 12th place out of the entire state at this year’s Olympiad. We scored 3rd place overall in the astronomy event and 1st place overall in the machines test! Congratulations to the team on a great year and a great performance! The B team (grades 7-9) is competing this week, so let’s send good luck their way!

Create 30-second videos answering the question “What did you learn about our democracy in 2020?” Here are a few topics that were front and center in 2020 that high schoolers could focus on: Racial justice and the right to protest Process for conducting a presidential election (e.g. primaries, voting rules, advertising, social media, electoral college)

Gerrymandering and voting rights

Are there prizes? YES! First place wins $500; second place wins $250; third place wins $100. In addition, a school with multiple exceptional entries will receive a $250 Catalyst Award. More info here.

Sign up for D.E.A.R.(Drop Everything and Read) in the Keefe Library during your Wellness period by filling out the Google Form for your cohort.

docs.google.com/document/d/1kzE42Xe2uwfMR_awzgTFahoFtMOuT2Eb_T_lGn6fMrg/edit?usp=sharing You will come both days that you are here at school, and bring your OneCard. We will move to an Oculus sign up once it has been updated. Thank you!

docs.google.com/document/d/1kzE42Xe2uwfMR_awzgTFahoFtMOuT2Eb_T_lGn6fMrg/edit?usp=sharing

Congratulations to the following students who competed in the Second Public Declamation and provided impactful, moving performances: First Place – Ruth Shiferaw (Class I); Second Place – Graciela Berman-Reinhardt (Class I); Third Place – Mirabelle Berman-Reinhardt (Class III) and Selina Tang (Class III).

Calling for all students (Class I-VI) to send their submissions for Third Public Declamation by Wednesday, March 24th. Students may declaim a passage or abridged version of a poem, speech, book or play. The duration of the text may not exceed 2 minutes and 30 seconds. If interested, complete the Google form located on bls.org, and provide your contact information, along with the exact text you plan to perform. Tryouts will be held via Zoom during Friday Flex on March 26th.

BLSTV returns with an all new season and an all new cast! If you want to be part of the club then fill out this google form and send in an audition video to blstvinfo@gmail. Video instructions will be specified in the most recent post to the BLSTV YouTube channel. All are encouraged to audition!

The annual BLS Spring Sports Informational Meeting will be held on Tuesday March 23 at 7pm. Zoom link will be sent in advance of the meetings. All candidates and parents for a BLS Spring Sport must attend this meeting. Please limit to one logged in device per household due to Zoom restrictions.

Last call for the Seal of Biltieracy sign up! Testing will be on Wednesday, March 24. Please watch your BPS email for details and resources. If you still would like to sign up, please fill out the Google Form. You are all set if you already filled out the form earlier.

More languages have been added recently: Amharic, Armenian, Chin (Hakha), Chuukese, Czech, Filipino (Tagalog), Haitian-Creole, Hawaiian (‘Ōlelo Hawai’i), Hmong, Ilocano, Kannada, Marathi, Marshallese, Samoan, Somali Maay Maay, Somali Maxaa, Tamil, Telugu, Turkish, Urdu, Vietnamese and Yup’ik. If you have any questions, please contact Ms. Kelley at ckelley2@bostonpublicschools.org

forms.gle/ZK1EULjF9C1wWfES7

BLS Women in Politics Club invites you to meet and ask questions of an inspiring and successful woman in Boston government, Boston City Councilor-At-Large, Annissa Essaibi George! This is an amazing opportunity to meet one of the current candidates running for Mayor. She is a well-respected former educator, and someone whose role in government in Boston has already accomplished many things.

Please join us March 19 during Friday Flex for the Women in Politics meeting and take part in the conversation and Q&A about what it means to have a role in politics as a woman. Email kdycaj@bostonk12.org in advance for the Zoom link or with any questions/concerns. Hope to see you there!

Students age 16+ can register online to vote using this form.

We are loaning out books! We are not open for dropping by but will deliver books to your homeroom, leave them for pickup at the main entrance, or send them to your branch library. If you know the title you want, provide the title, author, and call number. If you want a good book to read and a surprise, we are offering a “grab bag” option where two books will be selected by Ms. Ellis and Ms. Harari. Just tell us the genre you want or what subject you are interested in. We have received many new wonderful books over the past year, both fiction and nonfiction, and want to share them with you! Check out the banner on the Keefe Library website to view some options. Simply fill out this Borrowing Books Google form with all the necessary information.

Looking for internships, research, and speaking opportunities? Join your senior class treasurer Xiangan He this Friday, March 19th at 1:50 for the advice that will take you from zero to hero, the tips that no-one wants you to know, and actual internship opportunity connections.

k12-bostonpublicschools.zoom.us/j/2332541266?pwd=S2tydDR3YTRZamcxVGdkMnlOelhyUT09

Have you heard about the hate crimes against the Asian-American community on the news? Thinking about how anti-Asian discrimination affects the members of our own BLS community? Wondering how you can be an ally?

Join student leaders from the Coalition of Cultural Clubs, the Topol Fellows, and fellow student advocates for the Anti-AAPI Racism Forum on March 19th during the Friday Flex period to gain context of the hate crimes going on, talk about the day-to-day experiences that Asian-Americans face today, and discuss your own thoughts or experiences.

This event is open to all BLS students and faculty/staff, although we are limited to 300 people on the Zoom. Register here to receive the Zoom link: bit.ly/blsaapitalk Hope to see you there and hear your thoughts!

drive.google.com/file/d/1t_mtJ2vkPNsj4AiTZkeVQsb8t6wTdlqG/view

BLS Service Clubs interested in promoting their service opportunities at the March 31st BLS Community Service Fair should email thuang10@bostonk12.org for more information.

BLS YouthCAN invites you sign up for the Girl’s STEM Summit! Meet with the Boston Women’s Energy Network as they take a look at our energy ecosystem—from the generation of energy at a power plant all the way to the energy that reaches your house. They’ll discuss energy careers, diving into the engineering and design of modern energy networks, and zooming out to discuss how to bring a sustainable lens to the energy sector. They will wrap up with how you, as the end energy user, have the power to be part of the discussion. Panelists include Andrea Woelfel, Claudia Garcia, and Sara Harari, with a keynote from Hannah Rolon. SAT. APRIL 3RD AND SAT APRIL 10 8:00 AM – 12:00 NOON

Register at this link: juniortech.org/girls-stem-summit-live-2021/ Promotional flyer with more details linked.

drive.google.com/file/d/1j9qmzcTzoK2nUSZMbAItrvIP9ZCHIAzb/view?usp=sharing

Do you have a passion for baking? Do you often ponder how Romans lived without Cosmic Brownies? Do you love being in the kitchen (except for Burger King)? Mark your calendars for this Wednesday, March 17th from 3 to 4:15 pm, when BLSJCL will be holding a Blind Bake Along competition! According to Cato the Elder’s recipe for libum from De Agri Cultura, we’ll be preparing Cato’s Sweet Cheesecake together on Zoom, but we’ll be walking you through each step… Sweet Cheesus! 🙈 At the end, we’ll vote on the best cake! We’ll go through the recipe together at the event, but to prepare, be sure to bring an empty stomach, and these ingredients and tools. Email blsjcl@gmail.com with any questions! Hope to see you there!

docs.google.com/document/d/14lqPD_ZKdH7ZEzEGap1vOSDGn6_I1oavg0GyVDcEGJo/edit?usp=sharing

Correction on Ms. Lewis-da Ponte’s email address: slewis2@bostonpublicschools.org. The “s” in “schools” was missing from the email address, which may explain why I’ve only heard from one interested student!

Congratulations to all of the BLS students who participated in the 75th Annual BPS Science Fair.

Middle School Winners: Christa McAuliffe Grand Prize: Leila Ohashi

First Prize: Alexandra Yang, Hanna Flynn, Luca Brink-Bredella, Maya Seide, Simon Hay-Sutton, Sophie Shepard

Second Place: Atticus Scovel, Clara Ryan, Henry Tisdalle, Kate O’Riordan, Kevin Wang, Luis Bullock Gonzalez, Rahul Bansal, Thomas Blanchet

Third Place: Aiden McCue, Bryson Guthrie, Gabriel Gutlerner, Isabel Sheppeck, Joplin Murphy, Josephine LoRusso, Lucas Kriscenki, Oliver Murphy, Quinn Bowles

Honorable Mention: Anjuli Patel, Annabelle Ahearn, Aoife Bourke, Brandon Flores, Hossam Salhi, Larry Nguyen, Lianna Suero, Matilda Sanchez, Ryan Houston, Sophia Loconto

Promising Scientist Proposal Award: Bix SteelFisher

High School Winners:

Christa McAuliffe Grand Prize Award: Jon Lin

First Prize (Project): Alice Liu

Second Prize (Project): Alex Xu

Promising Scientist Award: Emma Lu

First Place Senior Division (Proposal): Christina Wong and Mathena Nguyen

Congratulations to the members of the BLS Mock Trial team who qualified for state quarterfinals!

They will be competing in the Elite 8 round of the MassMock tournament on Monday, March 15. Team members include Captains Claer Jestin (I) and Regine Pierre-Louis(I), Deputy Captains Gabriela Vasquez Rosado (II) and Rachel Roncka (II), as well as Mandy Sun (I), Alexander Young (I), Katie Rouse (II), Naomi Knight (II), Mirabelle Berman Reinhardt (III), Mira Yu (III), Gabe Feinberg (IV), Bennett Resner (IV), Michelle Chen (V), Ailin Sha (V), Emily Yu (V), and Amir Rodrigues Carbajal (VI).

Yes you read that title correctly. A musical about needing to pay a fee to use a toilet! With themes on environmentalism, corruption, unbridled corporatism, and revolution. It is hilarious. Auditions are March 10 and March 11 over zoom. All details are on the google classroom Code j2arnxv Feel free to email Mr. Gels jgels@bostonpublicschools.org with any questions.

BLSTV returns with an all new season and an all new cast! If you want to be part of the club then fill out this google form and send in an audition video to blstvinfo@gmail. Video instructions will be specified in the most recent post to the BLSTV youtube channel (link is on SIS). All are encouraged to audition!

docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeTAftpYVDoXonqF9vl-9FGnRLfAWiAY9_cew7ZVc2tqnALxA/viewform

Current AP students. March 12 is the final deadline to make any additions or changes to your AP exam registrations via AP Classroom and your College Board account. All exam registrations are final after March 12. Check your CB account to confirm your AP exam registrations.

The Academic WorldQuest team took home first place for Massachusetts this past Saturday in a trivia competition that tested their knowledge of current international politics, geography, global economics, history, and world cultures. Captained by Sylvia Posever and supported by Carrie Wang, Aidan Osowiecki and Ourania Parastatidis, they are taking home a championship banner for the Wolfpack!! Andrew Yu (although not able to compete yet due to age) was a critical player in helping prepare the team for this moment! They move on to the international competition on April 16-17.

Please join me in congratulating these phenomenal competitors. Go BLS AWQ! GO WOLFPACK!

BLS ASIA is hosting a three-part movie marathon event, showcasing significant Asian American movies and short films. The marathon will take place from Wednesday, March 10th to Friday, March 12th, occurring at 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM each day.

All classes are welcome to attend – join us at bit.ly/asiaevents2021!

You are invited to attend the upcoming staged reading, led by Ruth Shiferaw ’21, of W.E.B. Du Bois’ powerful remarks at a 1929 debate with eugenicist Lothrop Stoddard. If you are interested in learning more about this debate, take a look at the article about the event that The New Yorker published in 2019: www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/08/26/when-w-e-b-du-bois-made-a-laughingstock-of-a-white-supremacist

The event is designed to celebrate Du Bois words and voice. The event will take place over Zoom, supplemented with a YouTube livestream (if we run over 300 attendees) during Friday flex on Friday, March 12.

The sign up form to attend this event is forms.gle/wEtcwYux5TatwE9P7 In order to receive a link, students will have to sign up in advance; the first 300 will receive the Zoom link and the rest will be on YouTube livestream. Please sign up quickly, as we anticipate significant attendance, thanks to teachers offering extra credit for this event. (Freeman)

forms.gle/wEtcwYux5TatwE9P7

We are piloting remote/virtual lunch groups for Classes V and VI, partnering with upperclassmen active in extracurriculars/clubs where they can shepherd our younger students, who share interests in the same topics/activities.

Beginning March 26, 2021, we would like to hold separate virtual Lunch Sessions for our Sixies and Fivesies every Friday where a rotation of clubs would host a session per week. Participants would receive community service hours. These sessions would be for students who are working remotely only.

If interested, please email Ms. Lewis-da Ponte (slewis2@bostonpublicschools.org) with your name, class, and extracurricular/club.

Correction on Ms. Lewis-da Ponte’s email address: slewis2@bostonpublicschools.org.

The third issue of Veracium, a newsletter published by BLS V.O.T.E, is up now! It is currently published bi-weekly on our website on Mondays and details some current events, be it local, national, or global. This time, we’ll be covering Senator Ted Cruz’s vacation, the Equality Act, Mario Draghi, and continuing with the crisis in Myanmar. Read it here.

We’ll be having an info session this Thursday, March 11, at 2:30 for anyone who wants to get to know the club better. Please sign up for our club if you’re interested, or join us here on Thursday, March 11th. For more information, please contact Megan Li at mli16@bostonk12.org

The National Latin Exam will be administered to students during Office Hours on Wednesday, March 10, 2021. Only students who have been notified by their teachers that they are taking the exam should attend Office Hours that day.

If you have any questions/concerns, please contact to your Latin Teacher.

Congratulations to the BLS Science Olympiad team for competing in the Harvard Brown Science Olympiad Competition, and the MIT Science Olympiad, where they placed 42nd out of 115 teams and 72nd overall out of 150 teams respectively. The Olympiad is a team-based competition that features hands-on events in various branches of science including biology, chemistry, earth science, physics and engineering.

Students winning individual awards include Astronomy – 14th – Jerry Xu, Cindy Zhou,

Dynamic Planet – 30th – Khugan Chan, Alice Liu

Ornithology – 14th – Megan Li, Alice Liu Disease

Detectives – 11th – Nadine Han, John Lin Write it

CAD It – 22nd – Albert Lin, Ryan Zhou

There no time like the present to get involved by volunteering in your community. There are many virtual opportunities at this link and on Innerview. Get involved and make a difference.

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1JwL9Ff12Rugha8_QRxmcX2Dr41vdvCJhtcqsUoBZ2OQ/edit?usp=sharing

The Roman holiday Liberalia is coming up very soon! During this celebration in mid-March, Roman boys take off their toga praetexta and begin wearing their toga virilis.

We will be celebrating Liberalia by designing BLSJCL merch! We would like to give YOU the opportunity to design some BLSJCL merch with your art. The requirements for each merchandise piece are linked and also will be in the contest form so please make sure to check them out. All designs are due by March 13th! The winner of the merch contest will receive a free piece of BLSJCL merch. The link for the form is bit.ly/BLSJCLMerchContest.

Thank you! Please direct any questions to jlin29@bostonk12.org. We are so excited to see your submissions!

forms.gle/2VZWH4yKeZDov5nQ6

Science Bowl is holding tryouts for the High School Science Bowl Regional competition on Saturday, March 13th. Tryouts will be happening Sunday 3/7 (round 1) and Tuesday 3/9 (round 2), both days at 2:00 PM, at this Zoom Link (k12-bostonpublicschools.zoom.us/j/4754497933?pwd=VUJqdkNKTUhyNUFCRHE1YXNmVzNsUT09). If you are interested and are currently in high school, please sign up using this form (forms.gle/H3QMrzASgj8AMSVz9). If you have any questions, please email awu3@bostonk12.org.

There will be no after school tutoring on Tuesday, 3/9 due to faculty meetings. Tutoring will resume at the normal time and place on Wednesday afternoon.

Class II and III students: if your course selections for next school year include three courses in the same department, you must submit a google form to request permission to do so. You may find this form on SIS and it is due no later than Monday March 8.

Please reach out to your school counselor with any questions.

What are those strange explosions on Mars? What’s in that field? Come find out in BLS Theatre’s War of the Worlds! bostonlatin.ticketleap.com/wow Thursday March 4 at 7pm Friday March 5 at 3pm and 7pm Saturday March 6 at 7pm. Tickets are pay-what-you-can

BLS Korean Culture Club and Youth for Education Equality Club would like to invite everyone to hear the story of North Korean defectors, in partnership with Language Virtual and PSCORE. Please fill out this form if you are going to attend: forms.gle/JdJgciEJXmoJjGfZ9. You can also sign up via Innerview.

Contact us at bostonlatinschoolkcc@gmail.com or officialyeeclub1@gmail.com with any questions!

The BLS Science Team is looking for 7th-9th graders interested in science to come compete in the online Massachusetts State Middle School Science Olympiad on March 23-25!

Science Olympiad is a competition consisting of 23 events that cover various scientific fields (Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Earth Science, Engineering) where members participate in teams of two or three in each category. No requirements are needed except for an interest in science and a willingness to meet each week until the competition to study or practice!

If interested, please fill out the form here by March 1: bit.ly/blsbteam More information can be found on each event here: www.soinc.org/events/2021-division-b-events

Feel free to email us at blsscienceteam@gmail.com for more information!

bit.ly/blsbteam

Come join WGBH High School Quiz Show’s first-ever virtual audience for season 12 right from the comfort of your own home! This audience only session will be prerecorded and footage will be used on the show and the virtual audience wall! The real game between BLS and Hopkinton will be recorded at a later date.

All you need is a stable internet connection, webcam, headphones and high energy! Feel free to go all out with signs, banners, and Boston Latin School apparel to cheer on your BLS quiz bowl team’s attempt at a 3-peat championship!

Boston Latin’s recording time will be 2:15 PM Thursday March 4th, 2021

Please follow this link to register: www.eventbrite.com/e/2021-high-school-quiz-show-audience-recording-virtual-tickets-143105972817

BLS BLACK (Black Leaders Aspiring for Change and Knowledge) would like to thank everyone that participated in the 2nd Annual Black History Month Door Decorating/Zoom Background Contest. With the ongoing pandemic, there was a little uncertainty as to whether we could pull this off. But it was success, thanks to those that answered the call for contest submissions. There were 20 submissions from BLS students and staff. Each participant sent in a screenshot of the decorated wall or door or changed their zoom background to reflect themes that highlight and celebrate the achievements, history and culture of African/African Americans.

After careful deliberation, the winners are as follows…1st Place – Sophia Lange (Class IV); 2nd Place – Mr. Carrigg (BLS Art Teacher); 3rd Place – Sophia Shepherd (Class VI); Honorable Mention – Sophia Loconto (Class VI). Special shout out to Mr. Carrigg for having most of the submissions come from his classes. Another special shout out to people with the name “Sophia”. 3 of the 4 winners share that name.

The winners will receive a Black History Month prize pack which includes a tote bag, an insulated tumbler, a LED safety light with an inspirational quote by former President Barack Obama, and a certificate, all courtesy of the BLSA. All submissions have been added to the BHM Padlet. Congratulations to all the winners and to the BLS community for coming together to celebrate Black History Month!

padlet.com/cpinchem/qhlmsvwt881fhv3m

Create a 30 second video to tell us what you learned about democracy in 2020

review.wizehive.com/contests/democracy-challenge

Chromebook Wednesdays are here! This will be a dedicated time for students and their families to come pick up a new Chromebook or swap out their older or broken Chromebook. Chromebook Wednesdays will take place every Wednesday from 3:00pm – 5:00pm.

Pick up will be located at the front lobby of the school.

For any questions. concerns or emergencies, please feel free to email kpaynehall@bostonpublicschools.org

Are you a Star Wars fan who just wants to chill on a Friday? Join the Star Wars Club to kick off the weekend by watching one of the most iconic Star Wars movies, Episode IV: A New Hope. We will be meeting from 2:30-4:30 on Friday, March 5th.

Make sure to sign up by 11am this Friday, 3/5 for the Zoom link (no late forms accepted). See you there!

The World Historian Student Essay Competition is an international competition open to students enrolled in grades K–12 in public, private, and parochial schools, and those in home-study programs. The World History Association established this $500 prize to recognize young scholars.

Each competitor will submit an essay that addresses the issue: In what way has the study of world history affected my understanding of the world in which I live?

www.thewha.org/awards/student-essay-competition/

All students currently enrolled in AP courses should check their College Board accounts prior to March 12 to confirm registration for AP exams this spring. If you are not enrolled via your College Board account and AP Classroom, an exam will not be ordered for you and you will not be able to test this spring.

March 12 is the final deadline for making any changes to the BLS exam order.

Parents/guardians are invited to attend the Thursday, March 4 meeting of the SPC in which six teachers will discuss their elective course offerings. Although the courses previewed are for juniors and seniors, families of younger students may enjoy hearing what’s in store. Students in Classes III and II may also wish to join their parents/guardians.

Please use this zoom link to join the March 4th meeting, from 7:00-8:30 pm: k12bostonpublicschools.zoom.us/j/81928549594 .

Class II students who wish to apply for the exception of taking 4 AP courses in their senior year have until tomorrow, March 4, at 3pm to submit their application. Applications can be found on SIS.

Come join the new BLS History Club! A casual and fun place for all to watch documentaries, discuss history, and study up! Learn about the first impeachment and how our government became the way it is today. Learn about the history of the Senate and the US, or delve into international policy and world history. History is a fun and engaging topic, with a wide variety of sup-topics. Whether it is the history and culture of a specific group of people, or the study of tactics and logistics in warfare throughout the ages, that interest you, the history club is for you! Learning history inside and outside of school gives a person a unique perspective to better understand current events and what factors influence them. History is truly a topic for all. No required commitments, anyone can join.

Sign up here: forms.gle/P6C5e7s3U7PamuQH8 questions? Email Hliyuan@bostonk12.org or sstuppard@bostonpublicschools.org meeting time: Wednesdays 1:45-3:00.

Please enjoy the second edition of Veracium, a newsletter produced by BLS V.O.T.E. In this issue, we cover the situation with Myanmar, as well as updates on COVID-19 and Mayor Walsh.

If you would like to help publish more issues or discuss current events, please click here

On Wednesday, March 3, from 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm, BLSJCL will be hosting a speaker from the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts to discuss civil liberties issues related to privacy, and current state and federal legislation pending on privacy issues including on surveillance/facial recognition technology. You can receive 1.5 hours of community service for attending this event. This will be coupled with a write-in on the same topic following the event, and you will be able to receive an additional 15 minutes of service per letter you write and send. This event is in support of the Massachusetts JCL statewide service event for the year which encourages schools clubs to engage in group advocacy on issues important to our community. It is a chance to write letters and emails, and make phone calls to elected officials to campaign for a range of causes. The event is open to all BLS students so please join us and consider asking your friends to join as well.

You can register for the event here.

docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeUuqOeUrH7nrSqORFuNgO2yXV2N7V6qcLZcZ6y7ePcJV4gzA/viewform?usp=sf_link

On Saturday 2/27, 7 teams from BLS competed in the virtual Princeton Certamen Tournament against teams from around the country. BLS swept first place across all three levels, becoming the first school to do so in the history of this tournament!

Novice (45 team bracket) 16th place : Malvika Dias, Trevor Gracombe, Joseph Hemr, Mila Matteson 1st Place Champions! : Andrew Lai, Cole McKittrick, Ailin Sha, Mark Snekvik, Hannah Stoll

Intermediate (36 team bracket) 4th place : Jenny Chen, Zach Chen, Estiven Lezama, Neil Jin 1st Place Champions! : Creighton Banitt, Biya Brook, Joanna Lin, Alex Xu

Advanced (54 team bracket) 31st place : Juliana Abramson, Sam Bogomolni, Karen Dong, Joshua Emokpae, Lauren Lambrecht 9th place : Xiangan He, Louis Hemr, Kyler Hoodendoorn-Ecker, Grace Sullivan 1st Place Champions! : Luc Azar-Tanguay, Ethan Clark, Jinwoo Kim, Danny Nguyen

Congrats to all the players and coaches, and thank you to everyone who supported our teams! The final rounds were live streamed on YouTube. Check out the impressive game play and teamwork displayed by our champions!